


Contact

by Recovery_Zero



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-10
Updated: 2017-07-02
Packaged: 2018-08-21 18:16:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8255570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Recovery_Zero/pseuds/Recovery_Zero
Summary: When a new Agent joins Project Freelancer late, she manages to catch everyone's eye. To be honest, that's the last thing she wants. Alaska just wants to be left alone, to hide her tainted past. She finds herself unable to do so when she meets a particularly odd team member who hides behind his grey and yellow helmet. Just as everything seems to be looking up for her, Alaska's world is shattered and she's sent to Blood Gulch on a top secret mission that was bound to fail.





	1. A Test of Skill

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys, before I get started, I just want to leave a few important notes. 
> 
> First off, this story is slightly AU as I've changed the time line and events to suit the needs of this story. Also, some of the Freelancers that died in the PFL arc are alive in this because reasons. 
> 
> Secondly, you're named Alaska in this simply because I find it easier to write when I have a name rather than an unknown. Sorry if you don't like being Alaska. The same goes for your armor color, but that holds a significance that you'll find out about later on in the story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kind of slow and is from Wash's POV. After this chapter, things resume in your POV

Washington trailed closely behind the typical group of Freelancers, not quite in the mood to participate in their conversation, but still wanting to hear what was going on. The Director had recently summoned the usual crew and demanded their immediate presence in the Training Hall. It wasn’t often there was a sense of urgency to reach the training room as nothing important ever really happened there. Except, well, when they received a new agent. It seemed too late for someone to be joining the team though, but with the rumors that had been spreading, Wash caught himself entertaining the idea of a new kid joining them. 

Wash shrugged to himself and suppressed a yawn as he listened in to what York was asking Carolina. “You really think we’re getting a new kid this late in the game?”

The whole ship had been abuzz with the excitement of a rumored newbie joining the program. Washington had really paid no mind to the gossip as he figured another recruit would be added to the bottom as they all had been. No need to freak out about it, but the fact they were getting summoned had piqued his interest finally. In front of the steel colored soldier, Carolina gave a single shoulder shrug and dismissively stated, “It does seem rather odd.”

North jumped into the conversation at this point, definitely more intrigued than Carolina and Washington were. “Maybe our wonderful Director just couldn’t resist adding someone else to our team. Maybe this someone is extremely skilled.”

 _Skilled or not_ , Washington thought, _this still doesn’t seem right_. Washington was pulled from his thoughts as York began chuckling beside Carolina. The golden armored man nudged the redhead in the side before leaning in close. “You hear that Carolina? Looks like you’ve finally got some competition.” Carolina said nothing, but Wash had a feeling she was giving York an annoyed look.

Suddenly, North began to split from the group, and began making his way to the training floor rather than the observation deck. When he caught his friends staring at his back, North called over his shoulder. “I’ll catch you guys later. Special orders from the Director.” Behind his visor, Wash raised a single eyebrow, but said nothing. Something was definitely up.

The rest of the group made their way up to the observation deck and filed into the room. As per usual, they lined up and stood at attention, waiting for instructions from the Director who stood in front of one of the large bay windows. Using his visor to his advantage, Wash carefully scanned the room without breaking his stance. It looked as though everyone was here except Wyoming, Maine, North, and South. The Director whispered something to the Counselor who of course, stood beside him.

“Where is Agent South Dakota?” the Director drawled, obviously not pleased with her absence. None of the present agents said a word, and the Director definitely looked annoyed now. “I guess we will begin without her then.” The Director folded his hands behind his back and formally addressed everyone in the room. “Good afternoon Agents. As most of you seem to have heard, we are receiving a new recruit today.”

Washington perked up from where he was about to begin dozing off in his helmet at a commotion by the door. Everyone turned to watch South storm into the room, obviously late and ticked off. “What’s the big deal about that? A new kid doesn’t seem worth summoning everyone for,” South stated, blatantly disregarding the Director’s authority as per usual.

Silence engulfed the room, and it seemed deafening before the Director spoke. “Agent South Dakota. Need I remind you where you stand? You show up late and already have something to add to the conversation.” Pausing for a moment, the Director regained his composure. “Now, if you’re through, may I go on?” Washington stood stiff as a board as he watched the exchange. South nodded and the Director continued, once again addressing everyone in the room. “As I was saying, we have picked up a new recruit, and today is their testing day. If you would all be so kind as to direct your attention to the floor below, we will begin with our tests.”

Glancing to his peers, Washington noticed everyone breaking formation and shuffling over to the windows that overlooked the floor. Wash joined the rest of the agents by the window, slipping into the small gap between CT and York. Peering down to the center of the room, Wash saw Maine standing by himself, loosening himself for the impending fight. “To begin, we will be testing our new agent’s hand to hand combat skill against our very own, Agent Maine.”

Wash couldn’t help but cringe at the thought of going hand to hand with Maine. “Y’know, I almost feel sorry for the guy,” he muttered as he watched the newbie step out onto the floor. Wash’s eyes were transfixed on the soldier's grey armor, as it was only a few shades lighter than his own. The deep, forest green stood out in stark contrast with the pale neutral of the rest of the armor. Finally, the recruit reached Maine, and of course, Maine completely dwarfed the smaller soldier. Wash had his reservations, but he placed his bets on Maine winning this fight.

Standing at the console now, the Director kicked off the match.

Maine was the first to attack. He lunged forward, swinging a bulky fist at the smaller soldier’s head, but the new kid was surprisingly agile. Wash’s eyes widened as he watched the soldier turn into a grey streak as they ducked beneath Maine’s heavy swing and danced around the mountain of a man. Quick as a snake, Maine’s opponent stuck out, snagging a foot around his ankle and swiping the man’s foot out from beneath him. Caught off balance, Maine fell to the ground but quickly recovered.

Back in the observation deck, Washington was beginning to second guess his original thoughts on the fight.

As Maine hauled himself off the ground, he lunged forward, reaching for his smaller foe. He swiped first with his right hand, and the grey soldier ducked. As they ducked, Maine brought his left hand forward. Wash thought for sure the newbie was done for after this, but against all odds, the kid jumped back, narrowly avoiding Maine’s grasp.

The observation deck was filled with the excited chatter of the agents. Nobody was expecting the new kid to perform as well as they were. Color Wash impressed..

Wash’s jaw basically dropped as he watched the new kid dart around Maine, peppering him with well aimed punches. Somehow, the soldier managed to dance just at the edge of his ever reaching grasp. Sneaking around Maine, the grey recruit spun, placing their foot in the middle of Maine’s back. A hush fell over the crowd as they watched Maine go sprawling across the training room floor. Wash had so many things he wanted to say, but they died on his lips when he watched Maine roll over and snag the grey soldier by the ankle.

Wash held his breath as he saw Maine haul the soldier off the ground with him. This wasn’t going to end well for the new recruit. Maine lifted the smaller being off the ground before slamming their body flat against the training floor. The echoing thump could be heard all the way in the observation deck. Wash couldn’t help the involuntary cringe that wracked his body. He’d actually begun cheering on the new agent. Now, he wasn’t sure if they were going to get up after that blow.

To Wash’s surprise, the smaller agent rolled their body over, ankle still in Maine’s grasp. Maine lifted his foe, readying another body slam. Before he could, the grey soldier planted their foot against Maine’s visor and shoved. They were both an immovable force running off pure will. Wash was frozen as he watched Maine’s head tip further and further back as he still refused to release the ankle of his opponent. Finally, he let the soldier go, and the fight resumed.

The roller coaster of a match continued on for a few minutes longer before the recruit sent Maine sprawling again with a well-placed roundhouse kick to the face. Everyone, including the grey soldier watched as Maine hit the floor, face first.

Wash fought back a small cheer as the Director finally called the battle. The newbie was victorious, and Wash was surprisingly happy about it. To be perfectly honest, Wash was kind of excited to meet the new kid already. Hopefully they weren’t an ass…

Back at the console, the Director announced the recruit was victorious, and the next round was to begin shortly. Wash heard everyone around him groan when the Director mentioned lockdown paint. As the Director had FILSS begin setting up the floor properly for the new round, Wash was watching the newbie offer a hand down to Maine. The white armored soldier shrugged the recruit off and shuffled off the floor, hand pressed firmly against his visor. 

Shaking their head, the new recruit made their way back over to the side they had entered the floor from. Taking notice of the assortment of weapons that had been placed on one of the pillars, the grey soldier paused before the table. Wash watched intently as the newbie only pulled two pistols off the table. The soldier slammed two magazines home, and Wash’s gaze was torn away from the soldier by the familiar sound of South groaning in annoyance. “Seriously?” she whined. Wash glanced over his shoulder at the orchid colored soldier. He peered to where she was furiously pointing to the floor. There was a bright flash of purple on the floor that was messing around with a sniper rifle. North. “Why does he get to go down there?” Wash scoffed, and South turned her surely angered gaze on him. “Got a problem?”

Wash gave South an indignant look she wasn’t able to see. “You seriously want to go down there after seeing what he just did to Maine? You’re nuts.” South never replied to Wash as she was too focused on watching her brother load up his usual rifle with regulation paint. From where Wash stood a few people down, he could feel the jealousy radiating from South. Rolling his eyes, Wash notice Wyoming standing beside North, replicating the blonde’s movements.

The round began, and Wash’s gaze flashed back to where the new recruit was rushing forward, diving behind the pillars. Beside Wash, York was watching the recruit as well. “Only pistols against North and Wyoming? Oh man, this is definitely going to be interesting,” the brunette muttered.

Wash was transfixed. His gaze flashing back and forth between the new recruit and the two snipers that were beginning their stalking pattern. Wyoming and North split, one taking each side of the training floor and pushing forward. Wash could tell both were weary just from their form. Neither soldier knew what the new kid’s fighting style was, so they were taking a few extra precautions. North would round every corner leading with the muzzle of his rifle, stealthily stalking his prey. Wash couldn’t help but smirk as he caught a flash of grey already behind Wyoming.

The recruit moved with an amazing amount of grace for someone shoved into a suit of clunky armor. Sidling up to the next pillar, the newbie set their sights on Wyoming’s unprotected back. Raising their left pistol, they fired off a few rounds. Wyoming’s backside was immediately covered in the hardened paint. It wasn’t quite enough to incapacitate the sniper. Wyoming rounded on the recruit, slightly slowed by the layers of paint stiffening his armor. By the time he spun around, the recruit was already dashing through the pillars again.

Washington’s eyes widened when he saw the recruit begin sprinting before dropping into a perfect slide two pillars in front of Wyoming. As the grey soldier slid past, they plastered Wyoming’s helmet with the pink paint. Wash glanced to where he’d last seen North, and found him a few pillars closer to the recruit than he had been earlier. North was beginning to take aim at the recruit as they righted themselves from the slide. For some reason, North hadn’t taken his shot yet, and Wash’s gaze shot to the recruit who was now staring directly at the hidden sniper. Using both pistols, the recruit plastered North with the lockdown paint.

This time, Washington let out a small cheer and tried to disguise it as shock. Everyone else seemed to be in the same shocked state. The recruit had managed to take down the team’s two sharpshooters without taking a single hit. Even the Director himself was a bit surprised, but that surprise was soon overcome by pride in himself for picking such an amazing new recruit. Smiling to himself, the Director called the round and commenced the new one shortly after.

The next round went similarly to the first. The newbie managed to take down both North and Wyoming with ease.

Washington could feel the ripple of anxiousness and excitement that rolled through the crowd of agents watching the battle. At this point, he was definitely looking forward to the new addition to the team. He watched the new agent dance through the pillars, dodging shots left and right. Finally, a burst of pink erupted over the grey soldiers hand. South let out a pleased sound as it was her brother’s shot that struck the recruit.

Wash began watching more intently if that was even possible. Moments after the first shot hit, Wyoming fired off a shot of his own. It struck the soldiers left shoulder, completely immobilizing the limb. For the second time today, Wash wasn’t sure the soldier was going to win this one. He watched as the recruit dashed behind a pillar, narrowly avoiding an onslaught of shots. After regaining their composure, the soldier was back on the offensive, and somehow, they pulled it off. The recruit took down both North and Wyoming while only taking two more shots to the back in the process.

The excited chatter returned, and beneath it all, the Director let out a pleased hum. He depressed the button for the intercom. “Very well done, Agents. I’m actually impressed. Testing is over for the day. If you’d direct your attention to the leaderboard, our newest agent has claimed their place on the board.” Washington, along with everyone else turned simultaneously to face the glowing board. Alaska. The new agent’s name was Alaska, and they were already in third place beneath York! “Further testing will commence at 0600 tomorrow. You are all dismissed.” Without another word, the Director and Counselor disappeared, leaving the agents to go about their day.

Slowly, the agents trickled out of the observation deck and headed to the mess hall to get lunch. Everyone was chatting about Alaska the entire way.


	2. Meet the Team

Your POV

On the floor, you watched as the two agents you’d covered in paint scraped the offending substance from their armor. Before you could do a thing, a medical team swarmed you, milling about as they used God knows what to clear the hardened paint off your new armor. Once you had a full range of motion again, the medics shuffled off the floor and left you alone. Not knowing what to do with yourself, you just glanced around the large, intimidating training room, your gaze narrowing on the glowing list of names adorning the wall. Carolina, York, then you noticed the spot where your name had taken up residence. In the third spot the board boasted your name--Alaska. 

Suddenly, a flash of purple nearing you caught your attention. Behind your visor, you worried your lip as the soldier you’d fought against neared you. You simply watched as the soldier unlatched their helmet and revealed his face. His shocking blue eyes settled on you, and a small smile graced his lips as he finally came to a stop before you. “Hey, I just wanted to say, great job out there today.” The man shoved his hand out in an offering to you. “Name’s North Dakota, but everyone just calls me North.”

Wearily, you took his hand and shook it. “Alaska…obviously,” you replied. 

North’s eyes widened a fraction of an inch when he heard your voice.  
You cocked your head to the side slightly, the motion barely noticeable with your helmet. North just shook his head laughing as he finally released your hand. “Oh man, South isn’t going to let me live it down when she hears I got my ass handed to me by a girl.” You chuckled silently, having no clue who this South person was. North seemed to realize this and quickly tried to make amends. “I was just heading to the mess hall to get some lunch with everyone else. I’m sure the rest of the team is dying to meet you. Wanna come with?”

Quickly, you weighed your options. You could either go to the mess hall with North and go through the hell of introductions, or you could slip off to your room to sit in deafening silence by yourself. Not ready to face the silence quite yet, you gave North a quick nod. With one last smile, North spun on his heel and began heading off the training floor. Sighing lightly, you followed after the purple armored blonde. 

Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad if everyone on the team was like North. Friendly, non-intrusive, and just a seemingly nice person. “So, Alaska, I’m curious, where the hell did you learn to shoot like that?” North asked over his shoulder as you both trekked through the locker room. You watched as North paused at one of the lockers and jammed his helmet inside. 

Not wanting to divulge much about your tainted past, you just shrugged half-heartedly. “I used to command a unit before I was shipped here. Had to be a pretty good shot to work my way up in that crowd.” 

North’s icy eyes shot to your face. “Commanded a unit? Well I’m glad to have you on board then.” The blonde nodded behind him. “Shall we?” Before you could reply, North was spinning on his heel and heading out of the locker room. 

You swore your heart was going to beat out of your chest as you followed North down the hall. Your heart rate increased when the sound of voices echoed down the hall to where you walked with North. Finally, North passed through an open doorway that led to a room filled with tables. You paused in the doorway as you glanced at the agents sitting at the tables. You counted seven soldiers spread out across two tables. Their armor was every color of the rainbow. 

A hand came down on your shoulder, and you jumped slightly as you weren’t expecting the contact. North said nothing as he guided you toward the more populated table. Your stomach churned, and your heart leapt into your throat as the soldiers sitting at the table began to notice your presence. Silence consumed those who sat in front of you, and those who sat with their backs to you spun in their seats to face both you and North. North’s arm held you firmly in place as he pulled you against his side. “Everyone, I’d like you to meet Alaska,” he introduced you to the team. 

Not being good with people, you just raised a hand and waved awkwardly. The girl in the aqua armor nodded at you, while she glanced over you apprehensively. You got a smile and a hello from the brunette in the gold armor. The brunette in the brown armor gave you a pitiful look before smiling somberly. You shook off the look before acknowledging the last two at the table. The one in the grey didn’t take off his helmet, so you couldn’t gauge his reaction. Honestly, you were slightly intrigued by the mysterious figure. Moving past the grey soldier, you locked eyes through your visor with the blonde girl in the purple armor. 

Taking an educated guess, you figured this may be the South North was talking about earlier. They looked almost identical, and even their armor was similar. The girl didn’t exactly seem welcoming as she stared you down with an ugly sneer. You brushed off the look, shaking your head slightly. “You must be proud of yourself,” the blonde stated snobbily.

“South,” North chided from beside you. The blonde finally released you from his grasp and flopped down on the bench beside the only soldier with his helmet still on. 

You stood and watched awkwardly as South’s gaze flashed to what you assumed was her brother. “What? I mean,” her icy eyes flashed back to you, “this newbie just waltzes in here and claims third? The rest of us have had to work our way up the ranks to get to get to where we are.”

“If Alaska is able to hold his own and actually best some of our top agents, I feel like he’s kind of earned a top spot South,” the masked soldier defended you. Though, you slightly wanted to correct the whole ‘him’ comment, but you didn’t have time to. 

“What the hell even makes you so special to join the project late? I don’t give a fuck how good you are. You haven’t earned that spot.” South paused, fixing you with an even glare. “You were in good with the Director before you got here. Is that it?” 

In all your years, you were never known for your temper. You were always pretty easy going, and occasionally, strict, but it took a lot to anger you. This girl, she knew all the right buttons to press. Talking about your past like she knew you was the quickest way to flip the switch on your temper. Before you made a scene, you just shook your head and spun on your heel, readying to make your exit. With a jerky wave, you began walking out of the mess hall, not having a clue where you were headed. 

That is, until you heard South’s voice from behind you again. “I can see why you picked Alaska.” Against your better judgment, you paused halfway to the door. “You’re one icy motherfucker.” Shutting your eyes, you tried to brush it off and keep walking. Behind you, you heard a multitude of people trying to get South to calm down. Of course it was to no avail though. “Oh, is that it? Your last unit didn’t want you anymore? Too cold for them?” 

Finally, you couldn’t take it anymore. Her last comment was the straw that broke the camel’s back. You shut your eyes, and images of bodies strewn across the blood soaked snow filled your mind. Spinning on your heel, you made your way back to the table, your gaze fixed on South’s smirking face. Calmly, you rested your hands on the table and leaned in. Your helmet was mere inches from South’s face. “So we’re talking about why people chose their names are we? I think I figured out why you’re called South,” you spoke up for the first time since entering the mess hall. 

South quirked a brow at you. “Oh yeah? Why’s that?”

“South seems to fit you pretty well judging by the leaderboard. North is above you. Now, I haven’t been here long, but with that attitude of yours, I’ve got a feeling he’s always been better than you. You’ve been stuck beneath your brother for a very long time. Not just here.” Setting your jaw, you spun on your heel to actually leave this time. “Good luck surpassing your brother some day.” 

Letting out a deep breath, you exited the mess hall. You left a trail of silence in your wake as you disappeared around the corner. Suddenly, you realized you had no clue where you were going really. Pursing your lips, you headed in the direction you came from and hoped you reached the locker rooms again. You recalled the Director saying the training room was open to agents at all times. A run would be pretty soothing for you right now. 

As you walked through the halls, your mind began to wander. You thought back to your previous life. What things were like before you were brought on to be a Freelancer. Right now, you would have welcomed the familiarity of your cell. It was less complicated. Now, here you are, stuck on a ship with people you don’t know and obviously have issues with you, and there was no chance of escape. 

Finally, you reached the locker room, and you collapsed onto the bench nearest to you. You let your head fall into your hands with a metallic clang. Taking a deep breath, you fought off the panic that threatened to over take you. Treacherous thoughts invaded your mind. They refused to let you have a sliver of peace. Your fingers grasped at your helmet as you momentarily regretted your choice to come here. You should have just let them go through with the execution. If you did, you wouldn’t be in a world without your Marine brothers. You wouldn’t have to wake up every day knowing your flesh and blood brother was taken from this world too soon, and it was your fault. All of their deaths were your fault. 

The world seemed to be collapsing in on you. Your breaths came in quick, shallow gasps. A hand coming down on your shoulder had you jumping out of your skin. “Oh-I-uh-sorry,” a familiar voice sputtered. Your eyes locked on the soldier who defended you earlier. The only one who didn’t take their helmet off. “I didn’t mean to scare you.” The grey and yellow soldier took the open spot on the bench beside you. 

You shook your head. “It’s fine, I was just…thinking,” you replied, not putting your heart into your words. 

“About South?” Not wanting to go into detail about what really plagued your thoughts, you agreed. “Look, South is, well, she’s South. Don’t take anything she says to heart. She’s like that with everyone.” 

Shrugging, you glanced over at the soldier sitting beside you. “I figured.” You paused, trying to figure out how to word what you wanted to say next. “As for me, well, I just want you to know I’m not usually like that. It’s just, my old unit…it’s kind of a sore subject for me. We had a sort of…falling out I guess.” If someone could consider death a falling out that is. “I know it was dumb to be a bitch as the new kid…”

The words died on your lips as the man beside you started laughing. You didn’t say a word as he gained control of himself once again. “Sorry. It’s just funny because some of us were cheering you on silently the whole time. Even North told her she deserved it. So, don’t worry about it.” 

You nodded hesitantly, not knowing whether or not to believe him. The two of you sat in silence for a moment before finally, you spoke up. “What are the others like? Are they like her? I mean, I don’t even know anyone’s name aside from North and South..” 

“North didn’t even give you any of our names before throwing you to the sharks?”

You shook your head. “Just an offhanded remark about South. So, what’s your name?” You couldn’t put your finger on it, but something about this soldier just drew you in and intrigued you. Even after everything that had just happened, you were perfectly content to just sit here and talk with the male. 

“I’m Washington, but you can just call me Wash.” You watched as Wash stood from the bench. “Have you settled into your room yet?” Washington asked offhandedly. When you shook your head no, a grey hand came into your view. “Well then, let’s get you settled in. Tomorrow isn’t going to be easy for you I bet.” Taking his hand, you let Wash pull you up off the bench. “So, the rest of the team…”


End file.
